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Grow Down Downtown program highlights local vendors, aims to fill vacant storefronts
Summary
Speakers described Grow Down Downtown as a matchmaker program linking local entrepreneurs with vacant downtown storefronts and said the effort aims to make downtown a destination for locally made goods.
A representative of the Grow Down Downtown program described the initiative as a “matchmaker” effort to connect local entrepreneurs with vacant downtown storefronts. The speaker said the program seeks to encourage people who already live in St. Paul to open small businesses downtown and to make downtown a place residents “first think of” when they need a gift or a meal.
The presentation listed examples of products sold by participating vendors, including fossils, bloom bombs, responsibly sourced crystals and maple syrup, and argued those offerings create an in-person experience that cannot be replicated online. The speaker said the program envisions adding about 20,000 more residents to downtown “in the coming years,” and said that projected growth would create a stronger market for small businesses.
Program materials presented during the meeting emphasized that staff want entrepreneurs with existing ties to the community to “plant roots” in downtown storefronts. The representative said Grow Down Downtown seeks to pair entrepreneurs already in the community with spaces that “have great opportunity and potential” but have not yet found the right tenants.
There were no formal votes or actions recorded on the topic during the meeting.
